Investor protection remains atop FINRA’s priorities for 2022. “There will be a theme around retail-investor protection,” CEO Robert Cook said, during a recent webinar hosted by SIFMA. And FINRA will proceed with some existing initiatives as well as launch new efforts in 2022, he told SIFMA President & CEO Kenneth Bentsen, Jr., in a virtual Q&A session. FINRA will also revisit rules and regulations in light of changes brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and the industry’s shift to remote work, Cook noted. In doing so, the regulator could modify or extend some short-term responses to make them long-term changes. […]
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FINRA Weighs Lasting Impact of Remote Work
FINRA is preparing for a “new normal” in which firms will work remotely even after the pandemic passes. For example, FINRA is considering changing how it defines “branch office” and “office of supervisory jurisdiction” for supervision and inspection purposes based on industry feedback. “Many” commenters that responded to a request for feedback on lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic urged the regulator to revisit the definitions under FINRA Rule 3110 because firms have shifted to remote work. “Several commenters expressed concern that without amendments, personal residences of many associated persons will need to be registered (and inspected) to facilitate remote […]
Continue readingMore TagFINRA Extends Remote Branch Inspections Until End of 2022
FINRA has proposed to extend temporary relief allowing firms to conduct their 2022 branch inspections remotely through year-end. If approved by the SEC, the extension of FINRA Rule 3110.17 would extend COVID-related branch office inspection relief that is now scheduled to end on June 30. “The proposed additional six-month extension would provide further clarity to firms on regulatory requirements and account for the time needed for many firms to carefully assess when and how to have their employees safely return to their offices in light of vaccination coverage in the U.S. and transmission levels of the virus, including any emergent […]
Continue readingMore TagSEC Examiners: Advisers Should Review Policies and Procedures for Calculating Advisory Fees
SEC examiners have recommended that investment advisers “review routinely, refine, and improve, as appropriate, their fee billing policies, procedures, and practices and address new risks as they are identified” to ensure that they are calculating advisory fees correctly. They also should review their disclosures to confirm that clients are aware of all fees and expenses and related material conflicts of interest, examiners have suggested. Examiners made the recommendations after identifying deficiencies related to the advisory fees charged by most of the approximately 130 investment advisers that it examined in a nationwide initiative. The deficiencies “often resulted in financial harm to […]
Continue readingMore TagSEC Urges Stricter Robo-Adviser Compliance
The SEC has suggested that investment advisers improve robo-adviser compliance by tightening policies and procedures for automated digital investment advisory services. The regulator gave deficiency letters to “nearly all” of the advisers whose robo-advisory services it recently examined, according to a new SEC risk alert regarding electronic investment advice. “The examinations conducted within the scope of this review resulted in a range of actions,” the SEC stated in the risk alert. “In response to the staff’s observations, some advisers elected to amend disclosures and marketing materials, modify or eliminate performance advertisements, revise compliance policies and procedures, improve data protection practices, […]
Continue readingMore TagSEC Continues to Update Rules for Investment Adviser Marketing
Investment adviser marketing has taken another step into the present now that the SEC has announced it is withdrawing or modifying over 200 staff letters and guidance statements related to the decades-old IA Advertising and Cash Solicitation Rules. Most of the no-action relief letters being withdrawn are related to issues that are now covered in the SEC’s modernized IA Marketing Rule. “It’s no wonder IAs have been so challenged under the old Advertising and Cash Solicitation Rules since they had to manage so many exceptions to the actual rules. It would be helpful if the SEC would share a list […]
Continue readingMore TagRegEd to Showcase Enterprise Compliance Solutions at 2021 NSCP National Conference
As the leading provider of regulatory technology solutions to the financial services industry, RegEd will exhibit its enterprise compliance platform at the 2021 National Society of Compliance Professionals (NSCP) National Conference in National Harbor, Md., on Nov. 8-10. The annual NSCP National Conference offers dozens of sessions covering topics that are relevant to investment advisers, broker-dealers, private funds, and investment companies, and has been recognized as one of the most comprehensive educational offerings within the securities compliance industry. This year, “the only conference that’s ‘for compliance, by compliance,’” will focus on “the practical solutions to empower yourself and your compliance […]
Continue readingMore TagRegEd Expands Intelligent Capabilities for its Market-Leading Advertising Compliance Review Solution
RegEd’s Application of Advanced Technology Reduces Human Intervention in the Advertising Review Process by up to 70%. RegEd has expanded the Submission Intelligence capabilities of its Enterprise Advertising Review solution, providing financial services firms and banks with best-in-class functionality to power their marketing, advertising and customer communications review processes. Enterprise Advertising Review’s Lexicon Detection automatically flags problematic keywords and phrases using firm-customized business rules while Smart DisclosuresSM detects and confirms that submission items contain the proper disclosures. Together, the combined capabilities of Enterprise Advertising Review’s Submission intelligence and Intelligent Review modules reduce review time by more than 50%, and in […]
Continue readingMore TagRegEd Approved as Investment Adviser Representative Continuing Education (IAR CE) Provider
Compliance education leader will offer courses for North American Securities Administrators Association’s Investment Adviser Representative Continuing Education Model Rule RegEd has been approved to offer Investment Adviser Representative Continuing Education (IAR CE) courses for registered IARs subject to the North American Securities Administrators Association’s Investment Adviser Representative Continuing Education Model Rule. Content management vendor Prometric has approved RegEd as an IAR CE provider on behalf of NASAA. Designed to close a gap in CE needed for IARs, NASAA’s IAR CE model rule requires IARs to complete 12 hours of NASAA-approved CE courses annually. “Like other financial services professionals, IARs will […]
Continue readingMore TagRegEd to Participate in 2021 ARM Educational Conference
Thought leaders from RegEd will participate at the upcoming 2021 Association of Registration Management (ARM) Educational Conference, which will be held both in Sarasota, Fla., and virtually, from Oct. 11-13. RegEd is also a sponsor of the annual event. Attendees of the 2021 ARM Educational Conference, both in-person and virtual, will learn about and discuss issues and developments surrounding the registration and licensing functions for the securities and insurance industries. Attendees will benefit from in-depth educational sessions and hear from representatives at FINRA, NFA, NASAA, and SROs who will inform attendees of the latest changes affecting the industry. As the […]
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